The Pipelines

Two export pipelines are running from the Ekofisk Complex. A 443-kilometer gas pipeline with an external diameter of 36 inches is laid to Emden, in Germany. The 354-kilometer oil pipeline to Teesside has an external diameter of 34 inches.

In addition to ConocoPhillips' own production from Ekofisk, the pipelines transport gas and oil from ConocoPhillips' fields on the UK continental shelf, and other neighboring fields on the Norwegian and UK continental shelves. All the four fields in the Greater Ekofisk Area are tied in to pipelines. In combination the pipelines total some 1400 kilometers.

The Oil Pipeline to Teesside

The oil pipeline between Ekofisk and the terminal in Teesside, UK, came on stream in October 1975. Oil and NGL are boosted before starting the journey through the pipeline. There were originally two booster stations on the pipeline (37/4 A and 36/22 A), but they are now disconnected and removed.

In addition to oil and NGL from the Greater Ekofisk Area, oil from several fields in Norway and the UK is transported to Teesside - including J-block, Valhall, Hod, Ula, Gyda, Tambar, Blane, Fulmar, Halley, Flyndre and Stella. Thanks to the transportation of oil from other producers the pipeline can be optimally utilized, increasing the value creation. The pipeline capacity is some 830,000 barrels of oil per day.

On the UK side of the shelf, a Y connection is installed, where a 24-inch pipeline is connected to the oil pipeline. Several UK fields are tied in here, including the ConocoPhillips-operated J-block fields, the Maersk operated Janice field and the Talisman-operated Fulmar field.

The pipeline is owned by Norpipe Oil AS. ConocoPhillips is the operator of the pipeline operations, with an interest of 35.05 percent.

Gas distribution

Gassco, a company owned by the Norwegian state, is the operator of the integrated transport system for gas from the Norwegian Shelf to countries further south in Europe and the UK. The operatorship includes the gas pipeline from Norpipe’s Y connection, which is connected to the pipeline about 10 kilometers south of Ekofisk. Gassco also operates the Emden terminal and the booster platform B-11 located on the German continental shelf.

Prior to the change in the gas distribution system on 1 January 2003, Norpipe a.s. was the owner of the gas pipeline, while Norsea Gas A/S was the owner of the Emden terminal. ConocoPhillips was the operator of the gas pipeline, the terminal and the booster platforms B-11 and H-7. The H-7 platform was disconnected from the pipeline, de-manned in 2007, and removed in 2013. The B-11 platform was bypassed during the summer 2013, and the installation was removed in 2015.

The infrastructure associated with gas transport from the Norwegian shelf was brought together in the company Gassled from 1 January 2003.